T he International Organization for Justice and Transparency (IMO) has accused so-called Libyan Arab Army of General Khalifa Haftar and its affiliated militias of being directly involved in massive human rights violations amounting to war crimes against Tuareg civilians in Ganfouda in the west of Benghazi in Libya.
Libyan Field General Khalifa Haftar [depechesdumali Photo]

Press Release

Press Release

The International Organization for Justice and Transparency (IMO, which has been closely following recent events in Libya views the escalating fighting in the neighborhood of the city of Benghazi with ever greater concern. We now wish to draw the attention of the world to the serious crimes and gross Human Rights violations committed by the ‘Libyan Arab Army’ of General Khalifa Haftar and its affiliated militias. We would like to share the following resolutions:

1. We condemn in the strongest possible terms those crimes committed on March 20.12017 by certain members of the so called ‘Libyan Arab Army. who were led by a senior officer of that organisation: Captain Mahmoud El-Warfall.

2. We put on record the the shooting of three Tuareg teenagers, namely: Hassan Mohamrned (15, Issa Yahia (16, and Najmi Mohammed (18).

3. We call on the International Criminal Court, the European Court of Human Rights and the relevant Libyan Courts to conduct an immediate investigation into these outrageous extra-judicial killings.

4. We call on all our fellow Tuareg young people who are currently living in Libya to return to their home districts. We ask them to distance themselves from areas of ongoing conflict, and to avoid acts of violence, whatever the provocation and under whatever name the perpetrators are operating.

5. We call upon all Tuareg leaders and representatives of social or political bodies and institutions to give maximum dedicated attention to the development of appropriate programs for the support welfare and education of young people

6. We call upon All Parties concerned in the conflict and to bring lasting peace to the world to do everything in their power to protect young people in or of the country of Libya from the evils of arrned conflict.

7. We condemn all forms of aggressive violence of whatever kind and urge all parties involved in or affected by the Libyan Conflict to get urgently involved in the promotion of talks, towards Comprehensive National Reconciliation

A few days ago, the National Commission for Human Rights in Libya (LNHCR) called for action against the “war crimes” committed by Haftar’s forces in the wake of taking control of Benghazi. A statement issued by Operation Dignity leadership acknowledged that violations had taken place but sought to distance itself from those responsible. “The acts do not reflect the views of the general leadership,” Operation Dignity officials insisted. “They were personal and individual reactions.”

Furthermore, the LNHCR blamed the National Unity Government in Tripoli, the UN mission in Libya and the office of the ICC prosecutor for the violations because it said that it had warned them that “civilians in Ganfouda feared to be exposed to revenge by Operation Dignity forces.” The group called for the UN Human Rights Council to commission a fact-finding mission to investigate the “flagrant crimes carried out by the Operation Dignity militias.”